Canola varieties show genetic resistance to verticillium

Research in Manitoba has found some canola varieties, or canola lines in the development pipeline, have resistance to verticillium.

That’s a relief for canola growers because verticillium stripe has become a common disease in canola fields, at least in the eastern Prairies.

“I don’t know if they’re commercial (varieties) or not. The companies do not share that information with me,” said Dilantha Fernando, a University of Manitoba plant pathologist, who has been leading a project to understand genetic resistance to the soil-borne disease.

“They could be in the pipeline. They could be elite material. That part I don’t know. (But) this is good news for the (canola) industry.”